Obama Rally Thoughts?

So for those of you that made the trip to Clifton to see Senator Barack Obama last night, what did you think? I was impressed. He seemed a little tired, but he was right on message and the crowd I believe felt the history they were witnessing. I know I did.

It was also a very positive crowd. The best repeated line Obama used was "Don't boo, just vote!" He used that when boos arouse when ever John McCain's name was mentioned. That exemplifies the quality I like most about him, his honor. He does a great job at being a true uniter. He is about being President to everyone, not just the Blue States or the Democrats. That at the core is the most important thing a President must do. That is leadership.

I am please to be voting for a man that I not only agree with on a vast majority of political issues, but whom I respect.

Also, more from James making his final lit drop:

Update #1 From the Campaign Trail

A really good friend of mine, James Czar, is out working for the Obama Campaign's GOTV effort on the Eastside of the City. He'll be out today and tomorrow and will send me some updates as he can. Here's his first. His thought on this photo is the the GOP must be nervous.

One Day More Robo-Call

Again courtesy of Jason Silverstein at McSweeney's:

"Hello. I'm calling for John McCain and the RNC because you need to know that Barack Obama has not accepted Joe the Plumber's friend request on Facebook. We know he's logged on, because we saw he changed his status on Monday. On Tuesday, he joined the group Art Historians Are Saucy. But he still won't accept Joe the Plumber's friend request. He knows it's Joe. Joe uses the screen shot of the two of them together as his profile picture. That's not a uniter. That's the same old liberal-elite politics as usual."

GO VOTE!

I Hear America Singing

I hear America singing, the varied carols I hear;
Those of mechanics—each one singing his, as it should be, blithe and strong;
The carpenter singing his, as he measures his plank or beam,
The mason singing his, as he makes ready for work, or leaves off work;
The boatman singing what belongs to him in his boat—the deckhand singing on the steamboat deck;
The shoemaker singing as he sits on his bench—the hatter singing as he stands;
The wood-cutter’s song—the ploughboy’s, on his way in the morning, or at the noon intermission, or at sundown;
The delicious singing of the mother—or of the young wife at work—or of the girl sewing or washing—Each singing what belongs to her, and to none else;
The day what belongs to the day—At night, the party of young fellows, robust, friendly,
Singing, with open mouths, their strong melodious songs.

Whitman

Bite Me Ball at CAC Best Costume Winner

The suit is entirely covered by Obama stickers. Great fun at a great event!

Gangs in the Burbs?

Check out this report from WLWT. I am actually not sure what I think about it, so view it for yourself.

Election Predictions Thread

Well, we've certainly talked this election to death. Time to to put up or shut up: what are your predictions for Tuesday? Here are mine (please remember, these are predictions, not endorsements):

National:

• Obama wins, garnering more than 50% of the popular vote and a total of 282 electoral votes. He wins Virginia, New Mexico, Nevada, Iowa, and the Kerry states. McCain takes the remainder of the "battleground" states, including Ohio and Florida.
• The Democrats pick up 5 Senate seats and 15-20 House seats.
• Steve Driehaus beats Steve Chabot.
• Jean Schmidt beats Wulsin and that other guy.

Ohio:

• Cordray wins the AG race.
• Issue 5 (essentially eliminating payday lending) fails.
• Issue 6 (permitting a casino) fails.
• Justices Stratton and O'Connor hold on to their seats on the Supreme Court, probably by 10 or more points each.

Hamilton County:

• Greg Hartmann is elected county commissioner. Todd Portune also wins, although in a very close contest (probably no more than a 4-point victory).
• Bob Goering is re-elected treasurer and Rebecca Groppe is re-elected recorder.
• Martha Good is elected Clerk of Courts.
• Pat Dewine is elected judge. Judge Nelson is re-elected. The race between Judge Luebbers and Judge Mock is too close to call (that race alone may force the counting of provisional ballots).

City of Cincinnati:

• Issue 7 (banning red-light cameras) passes.
• Issue 8 (re-instituting Council elections through proportional representation elections) fails, thanks to late radio spots and direct mail efforts.

What do y'all think?

Make Your Vote Count

Hopefully, everything will go smoothly in the polling places on Election Day. But if you run into trouble, here's some advice: do everything you can (firmly and politely) to make sure you're permitted to cast a regular ballot. Provisional ballots are second-class ballots, and may never get counted.

Provisional ballots are not counted on Election Day. Instead, they're counted afterwards, and are subject to debate and challenge by the members of the Board of Elections. Moreover, they'll only be counted if the number of provisional ballots exceeds the margin of victory for any given race.

So if you find yourself being offered a provisional ballot for some reason, try to talk the precinct judges into giving you a regular ballot. If you're not successful, then before you cast a ballot, go outside and find someone from a Voter Protection group. Seek out someone from a campaign you're partial to (both the McCain and Obama campaigns will have multiple observers and GOTV personnel in place at most polling places). If all else fails, call the Board of Elections for clarification.

Finally, be prepared for a lengthy wait on Tuesday. But remember, so long as you're in line before 7:30 pm, you will be permitted to vote a regular ballot, no matter how long it takes to get through the line. (If a court orders precincts held open longer and you get in line after 7:30, you will cast a provisional ballot that is kept separate from other ballots (even other provisional ballots), so they can be thrown out if the court's decision is subsequently overturned.) So even if you can't get there until after work and the lines are long, don't fear: your vote will count, so long as you're in line at the right precinct by 7:30.